News article

22 September 2017

FDF Awards ceremony celebrates industry leaders

The Food and Drink Federation Awards ceremony last night showcased the success
and
achievements of the UK's food and drink manufacturing industry. A panel of
expert judges were
tasked with choosing the most inspiring, innovative and creative submissions
with 21 prizes awarded
to individuals, companies, and campaigns throughout the country. They were
presented by
broadcaster, writer, and comedian Hardeep Singh Kohli at London's The Brewery.

Community Champion (sponsored by Santander)

Community Partner (sponsored by General Mills UK Ltd)

apetito in Wiltshire, working in partnership with the Trowbridge senior community

Education Initiative

Central England Co-operative SENse to Aspire Scheme which supports students
through
classroom employability sessions and work experience in Staffordshire
Weetabix Food Company's apprenticeship and education programme in
Northamptonshire

Environmental Leadership (sponsored by Kite Packaging)

PepsiCo UK, in Berkshire, '50 in 5' project which aimed to halve the water and
carbon used to
grow the potatoes that make Walkers crisps in water stressed areas

Exporter of the Year (sponsored by Santander)

BFree Foods, the 3rd largest bakery brand in the Free-From category, based in
Newry and
Dublin.

Food and Drink Engineer of the Year (sponsored by Sheffield Hallam University)

Sarah Cain, Reliability & Maintenance Manager at The Wrigley Company in Reading

Food and Drink Scientist of the Year (sponsored by the Institute of Food Science
and
Technology)

Dr Wendy Russell, Gut Health Theme Leader and a principal investigator in
natural product
chemistry at the Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of
Aberdeen

Special Recognition Award (sponsored by Santander)

Ian Wright CBE, Director General of the Food and Drink Federation, said:

“The winners of the FDF Awards are the stars of our industry. I congratulate all
of them and our
shortlisted contestants and entrants. They demonstrate the vigour and
brilliance
of everyone who
works so hard to provide the nation's food and drink.
I also thank our judges and sponsors for making this event possible, and
everyone who attended the
ceremony for coming together to celebrate our winners.”

“Supporting the food and drink industry has been a focus for Santander in 2017
and sponsoring
these fantastic awards is one way to showcase our commitment to the sector. The
standard of
nominations was extremely high in all categories and congratulations must go to
all the winners. We
understand the importance of the sector to the success of the UK economy and
were thrilled to
celebrate their successes with industry leaders at the awards.”

The 2018 FDF Awards will launch in November 2017. For more information on the
FDF Awards
visit http://www.fdf.org.uk/fdf-awards.aspx.

Notes for editors:

The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) is the voice of the food and drink
manufacturing
industry – the UK's largest manufacturing sector. For more information about
FDF
and the industry
we represent visit: www.fdf.org.uk

Santander UK is a financial services provider in the UK that offers a wide range
of personal
and commercial financial products and services. It has brought real competition
to the UK, through its
innovative products for retail customers and relationship banking model for UK
SMEs.